Former Kent and England bowler Alan Brown dies aged 90
Kent and England bowler Alan Brown, who took 707 first-class wickets, has died at the age of 90.
Kent and England bowler Alan Brown, the former miner from Mansfield, has passed away at the age of 90. He captured 707 first-class wickets in 237 matches for Kent between 1957 and 1970.
Brown played a key role when Kent lifted the County Championship in 1970, ending a 57-year wait, and finished that season ranked 17th on the county’s all-time list of first-class wicket-takers. He earned two England caps during the 1961 tour to India and Pakistan.
While stationed in Kent for National Service in 1954, Brown built a busy non-league football career. Arsenal and Gillingham showed interest, but he signed for Gravesend and Northfleet in 1957, moving from centre-half to centre-forward and scoring 22 goals in 43 games over four seasons, with later spells at Margate, Canterbury City, Deal Town and Whitstable Town.
CricHubb Take
Brown's football background raises a practical question about how much stamina a county cricketer could carry in an era with fewer rest days and shorter tours.